Catheters have long been used for medical purposes and have a variety of applications.
DE-OS No. 30 10 841 describes a double catheter, the catheter tubes of which can be shifted in relation to each other and which can be employed for venipuncture in hemodialysis. The mobility of the individual catheters makes it possible, after insertion into a vessel, to space the inlets or outlets located at the tips of the individual catheters in such a way that the blood returned into the vessel does not reach the area from which it was removed.
DE-OS No. 27 03 087 describes a double capacity catheter for extracorporeal hemodialysis with two separate tubes for the removal and return of blood. The catheter tubes have a coaxial arrangement. At the end not introduced into the blood vessel there is an attachment element for the outer tube. In intraarterial chemotherapy, however, the known catheters have a restricted use, in particular they cannot be used for the isolated perfusion of certain organs or body parts.
The hematogenic metastasis of tumors, particularly from the gastrointestinal region into the liver, occurs by way of the portal vein. For this reason it is desirable to perform isolated perfusion of the tumerous liver by way of the arteria hepatica and the vena portae.
The objective of the present invention is to create a perfusion catheter whose structural design permits isolated perfusion of the liver, without necessitating the interruption of circulation through the vena cava and the vena portae and which permits the isolated withdrawal of blood from the liver during perfusion.